Calligraphy tools

The calligraphy brush is a tool that should be considered as a work of art itself. The various types of animal hairs employed in brush making produce different outcomes. Some hairs can absorb more ink, some can give off more, and it depends on the calligrapher to decide which is suitable for a particular work. The calligrapher’s brush permits more control of the tone and thickness of the characters. 

Ordinary people cannot make the brushes. Craftsmen who are highly skilled are required, which seems opposite to the simple looks and structure of it. A brush can even be fabricated out of bamboo where the tip is pounded into a fibrous brush and is used for quick, neat effects. Animals like wolf, weasel, squirrel and badger are some original sources of the brush’s hair. At present, the brushes are more usually taken from sheep, cat, dog, deer, goat, rabbit, and horse. Special brushes use straw, feathers and dried grasses.

Brushes that have similar features to calligraphy brushes are also employed in Sumi ink painting. Another form of the calligraphy brush can be seen in use in Maki-e (gold lacquer decoration). They are very fine, thin, and long, which is important for the critical work involved. According to reports, the best hair for this brush type comes from the plush side hair of ship rats, or, secondly, cats.

The intricacies of the art are even characterized to the intricacy of the brush creation itself. It makes one no longer wonder how highly regarded the art of calligraphy is.